EARTH WATCH
Diary of the planet
Methane detection
Analysis of data from sensors aboard a Canadian satellite have for the first time identified an individual farm as the source of methane emissions from cattle. Aerospace firm GHGSat used one of its three orbiters for the exercise, which demonstrated a new level of precision in identifying where the powerful greenhouse gas is polluting the atmosphere. With highresolution images from Feb. 2, the firm used wind modeling to trace the source of the methane from bovine flatulence and belching to a farm near Bakersfield. The new technology could help some regulatory agencies monitor how much methane is being generated by specific cattle ranches.
Earthquakes
A rare and very shallow magnitude 2.8 tremor jolted metropolitan St. Louis on April 28 without causing damage.
• Earth movements were also felt in Cyprus and other parts of the eastern Mediterranean, the Armenia-Georgia border area and South Asia’s Hindu Kush region.
Butterfly tags
Scientists have created tiny sensors that can be attached to the backs of monarch butterflies to track their migration. Millions of the colorful and threatened monarchs migrate each autumn to a cluster of mountain peaks in central Mexico’s Michoacan state. The new wireless sensing platform called mSAIL includes a chip that weighs only 0.002 ounces and measures only 0.315 inches in width. Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh say the sensors store information during the migration until the butterflies arrive at specific checkpoints and their destinations, where the data can be collected wirelessly. They say the tiny devices do not interfere with the monarchs’ flying ability or other normal activities.
Canine destruction
Earth’s estimated 1 billion domestic and feral dogs are ravaging the planet’s ecology by killing, eating and scaring wildlife, spreading pathogens to endangered species and poisoning plants. New Scientist reports the threat is most acute from free-roaming dogs wandering through protected wildlife reserves, including the home of China’s giant pandas and India’s tiger habitats. But even on leashes, domestic dogs have been found responsible for a “dramatic” reduction in the diversity and abundance of birds around Sydney, Australia.
‘Hellish’ roast
South Asia’s annual season of “heat and dust” before the summer monsoon season typically brings relief in June has long caused discomfort at this time of year. But an unprecedented and early heat wave this year has made life almost unbearable across Pakistan and India. The heat has sparked huge landfill fires and caused power blackouts as more than 1.5 billion people try to keep themselves and their food cool with air conditioners and refrigerators. Electricity supplies are cut up to 18 hours each day in some areas. Crops are perishing in the heat and drought, worsening already acute food shortages.
Novel foods
A switch from the typical Western diets of meat and dairy products to such protein as algae, kelp and lab-grown meat could slash the amount of Europe’s food-related greenhouse gases by more than 80 percent, according to University of Finland researchers. They also say the cuts could reduce water and land use for food. “It would be a way for someone to consume their fast-food burger, but save on land use and water use and global warming potential,” said Rachel Mazac.
Climate insurance
The floods, wildfires and other weatherrelated disasters that have recently plagued parts of southeastern Australia may soon become so frequent and vast that many homes will be deemed “uninsurable,” experts warn. The term “uninsurable” means that the risks are so great that insurance is only available at such a high cost that no one can afford it. The Australian Climate Council predicts that 1 in 25 Australian homes will be uninsurable by 2030.